Party at Castle Bleck
by Lime Jelly the Kitty Lord
Summary: The minions want to throw their beloved Count a surprise party! Count Bleck hasn't had a birthday party in a long time...will he be as thrilled as the minions hope he'll be?
1. Convincing Nassy

Count Bleck and his minions sat at the long dinner table, eating their dinner of Squig stew. Conversation was kept at a minimum, for it had been a long day of evil-doing and everyone was tired.

Out of the blue, Mimi blurted out, "Count, when is your birthday?"

"Ah," the Count muttered awkwardly, staring into his bowl.

"He'd rather not talk about it, Mimi," Nastasia said.

"Why not?"

"Because…" Nastasia sighed. "Just eat your stew."

"But, Count!" Dimentio exclaimed, perking up. "Such secrets must never be kept from family members. We _are_ family, are we not?"

"C'mon, Count!" O'Chunks urged. "You kin tell us!"

"_No_," Nastasia said, with a hint of annoyance in her voice.

"No, it's fine," the Count sighed. "Although when Count Bleck talks about his birthday, it brings back bad memories."

Nastasia patted his hand. "Perhaps it would be better if you didn't."

The Count waved her off. "Count Bleck was born on August 12. Every year on my birthday, my parents would give me a nice gift. But after my mother's game ended, my father and I became less and less close. Finally, one birthday—Count Bleck cannot remember which—we got into a very bad argument." He stopped suddenly and began staring at his dinner again.

Nastasia nodded. "That's all you need to say, Count."

"August 12," Mimi muttered under her breath. "August 12."

…

After dinner was over and the Count retired to his bedroom, Mimi beckoned for O'Chunks and Dimentio to follow her into her own room.

It looked like any preteen girl's room (except for the disturbing drawings on the wall and the pile of Rubees in the corner), with a closet full of all kinds of outfits. Mimi sat cross-legged on her frilly bed, while the boys took to the animal-print cushions on the floor.

"I've been thinking," Mimi announced, "of throwing the Count a surprise party."

"Whoa! Really?" O'Chunks gasped.

Dimentio snickered. "I already knew that. I've read it in that special little book of yours."

"Dang it, Dimentio! Stay out of my diary!" Mimi screamed, hurling a pillow at the jester.

"Mercy!" Dimentio cried.

Mimi smoothed out her dress. "Anyway, it's July 7. That gives us plenty of time."

"To do what?" Dimentio asked, his eyes narrowing.

O'Chunks nodded. "Yeah, don' we 'afta get the supplies an' whatnot?"

Mimi furrowed her brow and chewed her bottom lip. "_Well_," she drawled, "all we need are a few decorations and some food. Some music, too."

"Yes, but the cost of all this must be terrific!" Dimentio argued. "You know we're not the wealthiest villains in the dimensions."

"Ah think we're the only ones, lad," O'Chunks said.

"That's not the point!" Dimentio snapped. "How—and where—will we be able to get these things?"

"Ugh!" Mimi groaned, flopping facedown onto the covers. "I had a bad feeling about this. I knew it wouldn't work." She sounded as though she would start crying.

"Cheer up, lass," O'Chunks said, patting the green girl on the back with a little too much force. "Per'aps we kin work with what we 'ave. We don' 'afta go all out."

Mimi sighed and sat up. "I guess so…maybe we'll find a cheap party store somewhere."

"Really, all we need are balloons—there's a bag of them in my closet—a cake, a few snacks, and we could use Mimi's radio for music," Dimentio suggested. "And Nastasia's approval."

"She's probably gonna say no," Mimi muttered gloomily. "She hates parties."

"But this one's fer the Count," O'Chunks reminded her. "An' it'll jus' be the five o' us."

"True."

"Why don't we ask her now?" Dimentio said. "That way we can figure out what in Grambi's name we are doing."

"Where is she?" Mimi asked.

"In her study, I think. Let's go!"

…

Nastasia gasped as the three other minions burst through her study door. "What do you guys want?" she sighed.

"We want to throw the Count a surprise party," Mimi explained.

Nastasia shook her head. "Oh, you guys. That's just too much work."

"I knew it!" Mimi pouted.

"Now hang on, Mimi, don't get your skirt in a bunch," Dimentio said. To Nastasia, he said: "My dear, you've always wanted to please the Count. What better way to do it than to throw him a nice little party? I promise we won't make any messes that we can't clean up. It shall be an inexpensive affair, and we'll all pitch in to help prepare the event." He grinned a charismatic grin and spread his arms wide. "So, what do you say? Make the Count happy, or let him go on without another birthday party for the rest of his life?"

Mimi and O'Chunks watched Nastasia hopefully.

The secretary sighed and rubbed her neck. "Dimentio, I know you've perfected the art of persuasion, and I must say that's a pretty good pitch you had there." She stopped and looked at the other two minions. "And I know you guys really, really want to do this…but I just don't know."

"Oh please, Nassy?" Mimi begged, kneeling down. "Pretty please with whipped cream, sprinkles, and a cherry on top?"

O'Chunks licked his lips. "Mmm, ah could go fer a sundae righ' now."

Nastasia took in a deep breath. "Alright. But first we need to discuss this a little further."

"Hooray!" Mimi and O'Chunks cried, jumping up and down.

Dimentio smirked and bowed. "My work here is done."

"Oh no, it's not," Nastasia said. "Come on, guys, we've got to get busy planning this birthday party."


	2. The Power of Mimicry

The four minions sat on the floor in Nastasia's study, laying out their plans for the Count's surprise party. They couldn't go into the meeting hall, for the Count would hear them and suspect something was going on. They talked as quietly as possible to avoid waking their master.

Nastasia tapped her pencil against her legal pad and asked the other three, "So what do we need to buy?"

"As I said earlier, we have balloons and music," Dimentio said. "Really, all we need is food."

"And cake!" Mimi added. "Don't forget cake!"

Nastasia scribbled the information down on her notepad. "Mm-hmm. Are we gonna buy a cake or make one?"

"I think we should make one," Mimi suggested. "That would show the Count that we actually put effort into it."

"Right."

"What's in a cake, anyway?" Mimi wondered.

O'Chunks grinned wide. "Ah remember me mother's cakes. She always made 'em with Sweet Batter and a dash o' Fluffle Frostin'." He stopped and licked his lips.

"Fluffle…Frosting…" Nastasia muttered as she jotted it down. "Okay, but where are we gonna find that?"

"If I recall correctly, I do believe they sell those things somewhere in Flipside," Dimentio remarked.

Mimi gasped and jumped up. "Howzit's! Of course!"

"Then let's get going," Nastasia said. "Dimentio, take us there."

"Are yeh sure, Nastasia? It's gettin' late…" O'Chunks warned.

Nastasia lowered her voice to a whisper. "We'd better go now, before the Count wakes up."

"Okay everyone, gather 'round," Dimentio announced. He snapped his fingers, and a box appeared around the little group. The magician snapped again, and they all disappeared in thin air, leaving a rippling shockwave.

When they arrived at Flipside, the streets were quiet. Townsfolk had just begun to lock their doors.

"Let's hurry," Nastasia said, "before the store closes."

Luckily, Howzit welcomed them in once they appeared at the door. "Gooooooood evening!" he boomed. "Looking for something last-minute?"

"Do you happen to have any Sweet Batter?" Nastasia asked timidly.

"Why yes, we—" Howzit stopped suddenly and looked at the minions. His jovial manner quickly disintegrated. "I know you!" he cried. "You're working for that evil guy that wants to destroy the world! No, you're no gooooooood!"

Nastasia sighed. "We're not going to hurt you, I promise. We just want some baking supplies."

"Get out of my shop!" Howzit wailed, shoving everyone out. "Gooooooooood-bye!" he added sharply before slamming the door.

"Now what?" Mimi grumbled.

"I'll take care of 'im," O'Chunks grunted, raising his fist.

Nastasia stopped him. "No, let's not hurt him. There's got to be a better way to do this."

Dimentio chimed in. "Why don't we send Mimi in as a villager? That way, he'll suspect nothing of it."

Mimi, using her shapeshifting skills, transformed into a perfect replica of a Flipside girl. "Ugh, these people have such a boring fashion sense."

"Never mind," Nastasia urged. "Just go in."

Mimi politely knocked on the door.

"Go away! You're no goooooood!"

"No, Mr. Howzit, I'm not a bad guy!" Mimi called in.

The door opened, and Howzit scanned the faux-child. He grinned. "Good, good! Come on in."

"Thank you, Mr. Howzit!" Mimi said in a sickly-sweet voice. She winked at her friends.

"How can I help you today?"

"I need some Sweet Batter and, uh, Fluffy Frosting. And I also need some snacks for, like, a party, you know."

"Goooooooooood!" Howzit sang as he handed Mimi the items. "Here's some Crackle Chips and a bottle of Bubblefizz. Is that goooood?"

"Uh-huh!" Mimi said cheerfully.

"Gooooood! That'll be 30 coins."

Mimi's hand went to her pocket. Suddenly she froze. "Er—I think I might've left my purse out front. Let me go get it."

"Okay, okay, that's gooood," Howzit said, though a skeptical look spread across his face.

"Guys," Mimi hissed as she stepped outside. "Did we remember to bring money?"

Nastasia's hands went to her face. "Oh, no," she whispered.

"I'd contribute, but I haven't got pockets," Dimentio muttered sadly.

O'Chunks looked around. "Maybe we kin find some change on th' ground."

"No," Nastasia grunted. "I'll handle this."

She marched inside the shop and tipped her glasses. Howzit only had time for one "Huh—" before he was hit by the red beams.

"This isn't gooooooood!" he cried. When the beams subsided, Howzit grinned. "Okay, fellows, here's your groceries! No need to pay, it's all goooood. HAIL BLECK!"

"Thank you," Nastasia said. She took the groceries into her hands and headed out.

Once the minions had returned to Castle Bleck, Dimentio asked, "So is Howzit a permanent minion now?"

Nastasia shook her head. "No, I programmed it so that the hypnosis wears off by tomorrow. He won't remember a thing that happened. For now, we have everything we need. Now let's get some sleep."


	3. Preparations and Frustrations

At last, the day of the party had come. The minions were prepared. Nastasia had arranged for the Count's old friend, Cornelius Bitterwater (another evil nobleman) to take the Count into town as a "birthday treat". At first the Count seemed suspicious—he hadn't heard from Cornelius in years—but he soon decided that it would be nice to spend the afternoon with his old comrade.

"We'll tidy up the castle for you while you're out, Count," said Nastasia as they stood in the foyer, waiting.

"Good, good. Is my monocle on straight?"

"Yes."

Suddenly the doorbell rang. The Count opened the front door and cried, "Cornelius! What a pleasure it is to see you again!"

There in the doorway stood a tall, dapper, and frightening man. His skin was snowy white and his eyes were deep blue. He had a sharp nose and long, skeletal fingers, and he wore an ebony-black suit and cape with a matching stovepipe hat.

Cornelius cackled. "Same to you, Bleck, my good man! Now let's be on our way; there's so much to do in so little time."

"Bleh-heh-heh. You haven't changed a bit!" The Count turned to Nastasia and said, "Take care of the castle for me, please. I will see you in a few hours. Goodbye!"

As the two masterminds walked off, Cornelius winked at the secretary.

Once the door was shut, Nastasia scurried upstairs to the chambers. "All right, everyone, let's get started! We've got so much to do…"

Obediently, the three minions came out of their rooms and followed Nastasia back downstairs. Dimentio carried a bag of balloons, while Mimi had her stereo in hand.

"Shall I get th' ingredients?" O'Chunks asked.

"Soon, but right now I want all three of you to help me clean this place up."

Mimi groaned. "Does it have to be perfect?"

"Not _perfect_, Mimi, but clean enough for a party. You guys realize that this party needs to be great. Our mission here is to make the Count feel happy just for once on his own birthday."

"True," O'Chunks agreed.

"This whole thing was my idea, anyway," Mimi grumbled as she pulled out the broom and began sweeping the kitchen floor.

"Oh, step aside," Dimentio sighed as he raised his arms. With two white flashes, the whole first floor of the castle became spotless.

Nastasia laughed embarrassedly. "Oh…heh, heh, I forgot you could do that."

"Yay! Now for the fun part!" Mimi cheered, running to the bag of balloons. She extracted a bright pink one and began blowing into it. Unfortunately, it barely inflated, and Mimi kept puffing until her green cheeks were a scary shade of red.

"Maybe you should let O'Chunks do it," Nastasia suggested.

Mimi handed the bag over to O'Chunks, who puffed out his chest and brought the balloon to his mouth. With a mighty huff and puff, the balloon swelled…but only a little. With a sad _whoosh,_ it fluttered to the ground, limp.

"Aye," remarked the brute, "this is 'arder than ah thought it'd be."

"Let me see it," Dimentio sighed. He simply pressed his hand to the opening of the balloon, and it slowly filled with air. It even magically closed off once it was completely inflated. Inside, thousands of tiny golden sparkles swirled around.

"Thank you, Dimentio, that looks very nice," Nastasia said.

"My pleasure," the jester replied.

"Now can we make the cake?" Mimi pleaded.

Nastasia nodded. "Yes. Come on, you can help me. Dimentio, keep blowing up those balloons. O'Chunks, you can hang them up wherever you like."

The girls made their way to the massive kitchen. Nastasia reached inside a sort of hidden cabinet—her secret hiding place—and pulled out the grocery bag. She set aside the soda and chips and took out the batter and frosting.

Mimi selected a large pan from the pantry and set it down on the counter. Nastasia poured the batter into it.

"I think that's all we have to do," Mimi said. "Now we just need to put it in the oven."

"Are you sure, Mimi?" Nastasia asked.

"I'm pretty sure. Check the box."

The secretary inspected the box closely. "It doesn't say anything."

"Well, the batter's already made, so I think we just need to bake it."

"Alright," Nastasia said. She opened the oven door and slid the pan inside. "What temperature should I set it at?"

"Mmm…I'd say around 600 degrees. That's nice and hot."

"That's awfully hot, Mimi…"

The green girl sighed. "I could've sworn that's what I remember."

Nastasia set the temperature to 600 degrees.

"That's done," she said. "Here, let's find some cups and plates for the food."

A loud bang sounded from down the hallway.

"BLARGH! They keep poppin' like crazy!"

"I swear, O'Chunks, it's those enormous hands of yours. If you'd just let me do it…"

"'Ey, you stick to blowin' 'em up. I can do this."

"Must I? This would go a _lot faster _if I could hang up the balloons myself. Why don't you just—"

"Quit arguing, guys, we don't have much time," Nastasia called to them.

Mimi giggled.

"We'll never get anything done around here…" Nastasia's voice trailed off as a burning smell filled her nostrils.

"NYAAH!" Mimi screamed. She smelled it, too.

Frantically, Nastasia dashed to the oven. She threw open the door, and chokey smoke came billowing out. Once it cleared, Nastasia donned her oven mitt and yanked out the pan.

The cake had been charred completely black. Small pieces flaked off of it and onto the kitchen floor.

"Oh, it's ruined!" Nastasia wailed. "600 degrees? How could I have been so stupid?"

She grabbed a knife and sliced into the cake, causing it to explode. Yellow gooey batter sprayed everywhere.

"NYAAH!" Mimi screamed again.

"My clothes, my hair, the floor!" Nastasia lamented. "Everything is ruined."

"Grambi's sake!" Dimentio shouted, shoving past the others. With a few mumbled words and a bit of swishing motions, the charred cake was completely transformed. It now stood three layers tall, perfectly symmetrical. Dimentio had even added the frosting, which swirled in gorgeous patterns and spelled the words, "Happy Birthday, Count!" The floors became squeaky clean, as did Nastasia's and Mimi's clothes and hair.

"Oh, Dimentio…it's beautiful!" Nastasia gasped, staring up at the cake. "He'll love it!"

"Yes, thank you," the magician replied. "But please, consort me the next time you wish to bake a cake without knowledge on how to actually do it."

"Yes, Mimi," Nastasia scolded. "You were lying to me, weren't you?"

"I…I _thought _I knew!" Mimi protested.

"Nevermind. The cake's finished, and we're almost done. Let's set out the food."

Dimentio returned to O'Chunks and the balloons. Mimi found a large bowl and poured in the Crackle Chips. Nastasia searched the cupboard for something to pour the Bubblefizz in, but there were no paper cups or even juice glasses.

"Hmm," she muttered. "All we have are the less expensive goblets. I guess these will have to do."

With that, the Count's fancy wine goblets held sparkly pink soda.

The men entered the kitchen. "We're done with the balloons," O'Chunks announced.

"Great. Could you help me put out the cake?"

Dimentio magically lifted the cake and set it down onto the platter that O'Chunks was holding. O'Chunks then carried the platter to the kitchen table, followed by Mimi with the bowl of chips, Nastasia with the goblets on a tray, and Dimentio with a stack of plates.

"Whew," Nastasia exhaled, relieved. "Thank you, guys. I'm sorry I snapped at you before. I'm really proud of you all."

"Aww, thanks, Nassy!" Mimi said, smiling.

"Yeah, you did a good job, too, Nastasia," O'Chunks added.

"Yes, you were the one that kept us going," Dimentio agreed.

Nastasia smiled softly. "Now, let's all get freshened up. We still have some time before the Count gets home."

After a while, everyone came back downstairs looking much neater. Mimi had chosen a dark blue dress, the color of the Count.

"I'll turn on the music!" Mimi cried, rushing over to her stereo. She selected a particularly peppy pop song and began shaking her hips to the beat.

Nastasia looked around. The castle was clean, the decorations were hung—O'Chunks had actually picked very nice spots—and the food was ready. She had never felt more proud in her life.

Suddenly, the door handle rattled. Quickly, the minions crouched down to hide. Dimentio turned off the lights.

"Ohoho, I had a wonderful time, Bleck," Cornelius chortled.

"Wouldn't you like to stay awhile?" the Count asked as he stepped inside.

"Oh no, I really must be heading home now. My pets don't like being left alone for too long. Farewell, and happy birthday, my good friend!"

"Farewell, Cornelius! Goodbye, called Count Bleck! Bleh-heh-heh." The Count closed the door behind him. "Nastasia?" he called. "Minions? Where is everybody, wondered Count Ble—!"

"SURPRISE!" the minions cried, jumping up.


End file.
